Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 10 December 2020
361. Deputy Bernard J. Durkan asked the Minister for Justice the degree to which recidivism is being confronted with particular reference to the number of cases in which repeated offences have occurred in respect of prisoners while on bail or on bail for more than one alleged crime; if further legislative changes are required to address this issue; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [42816/20]
View answerAs the Deputy may be aware, the decision to grant bail in a particular case is a matter for the presiding Judge, who is independent in the exercise of his or her judicial functions. There is also a Constitutional presumption in favour of the grant of bail as, under Irish Law, a person is presumed innocent until proven guilty.
As previously indicated to the Deputy, public safety is an absolute priority for me as Minister for Justice. Working to reduce re-offending and minimise the risk of further harm to victims and society, through the implementation of effective evidence-based penal policy, is a key part of that task.
The Deputy will wish to be aware that a number of initiatives were introduced over the past decade to reduce reoffending including Community Return and Community Support Schemes and the Joint Agency Response to Crime (J-ARC). Community Return and Community Support Schemes were introduced in 2011 and aim to increase support for prisoners prior to their release from prison, upon their release, and then for a period after their release in order to break the cycle of offending;
The Joint Agency Response to Crime (J-ARC) is a multi-agency response to the supervision and rehabilitation of offenders which commenced in 2014. The programme aims to target prolific offenders who are responsible for large amounts of crime. In order to reduce crime and enhance public safety, the selected prolific offenders are managed through the integration of policy and practice between the J-ARC agencies.
While I’m sure the Deputy will appreciate, it is challenging to relate the impact any one action or any specific legislation has to general re-offending rates as recidivism may be impacted by a number of other variables, such as social influences or other external factors. However, an example of the impact of legislation in this area is the Criminal Justice (Community Service) (Amendment) Act 2011. This Act provides that a court shall consider the appropriateness of a community service order in circumstances where a sentence of imprisonment of up to 12 months is being considered. There has been a consistent increase in the management of community service orders by the Probation Service over the past three years. In 2019, the Probation Service managed 2,791 Community Service Orders, totalling 379,815 hours work, in lieu of 1,247 years in prison, which equated to €3 million of unpaid work. Despite this, the use of short sentences is something that I am continuing to focus on as their use remains prevalent.
Earlier this year my Department launched the findings from an international evidence review on recidivism and policy responses. This research report is the third in a series of releases to be commissioned and disseminated by the Research and Data Analytics unit in my Department, was prepared by Prof. Ian O’Donnell from the Institute of Criminology and Criminal Justice, School of Law, UCD.
The review sought to address a range of questions relating to the factors underpinning recidivist and prolific offending behaviour; public policy interventions that tackle recidivism and prolific offending; and the effectiveness of these interventions and likelihood of successful transplantation to an Irish context.
The review will constitute a valuable resource for researchers and act as a springboard for future empirical research on best practice in this area and provide a body of evidence essential to inform future policy discussions and development. The full report, including key finding, is available on the website of my Department and builds on the Department’s commitment, outlined in the 2018-2020 Data and Research Strategy, to support the development of more evidence-informed policy making.
As the Deputy will also be aware, the Criminal Justice Act 2017 strengthens the operation of the bail system with the aim of making the law as effective as possible in protecting the public against crimes committed by persons on bail.
Under the Act, a Court, in considering an application for bail, is required to have regard to persistent serious offending by an applicant and the nature and seriousness of any danger presented by the grant of bail to a person charged with an offence that carries a penalty of 10 years’ imprisonment or more. The Court will also have the power, in certain cases, to hear evidence from the victim of an offence before a decision on bail is taken. Where an accused person is granted bail, the Act provides for stricter bail terms for repeat serious offenders, strengthens Garda powers to deal with breaches of bail and increases the use of curfews.
